Midnight Talks
by foxfire222
Summary: Part 6 of the Frienemies Series. Post S02E06. Barry gets a visitor after Zoom injures his spine. But is he ready to listen or is it still to soon?


Barry lay there in the dark. The Cortex was so silent it almost hurt his ears. His throat was dry but he couldn't find the motivation to move a single inch to fix that. All he could focus on, now that he was alone, was how all of this had happened. He had gotten cocky, used people he cared about as nothing more then bait, and shown as a bloody pulp on that morning's news. Sure, his skin deep injuries had healed quickly. But his spine...Caitlin said she wasn't sure if the damage would heal. Barry didn't understand how he couldn't feel his legs but his back could hurt so much. Another reason to hate the fact that he couldn't take pain meds. The tears he had been holding back all day finally fell, now that he was alone. No sobs, not yet, just tears. Tears for his own stupidity. Tears for the terrified look on Linda's face. Tears for the people of Central City who now had no one to protect them.

Barry panicked when he heard a knock. He turned to see a figure cloaked in shadow standing in the doorway to the medical room of the Cortex. Barry didn't even need the person to step forward, recognizing the silhouette almost instantly, "Snart?" Barry tried to keep his voice calm but it cracked. He reached up to try and wipe the tears from his face. Now that they had started however they just wouldn't stop.

"Barry." Snart sounded the same as always. Though he didn't make any move forward. Just continued to stand in shadow, "Saw you on the news."

Barry winced and looked away once he came to terms with the fact that the tears wouldn't stop, "You shouldn't be here." Barry replied

"I disagree." Snart's booted footsteps were almost to loud in the dark silence surrounding them. The footsteps stopped right behind Barry but Barry didn't turn, "It looks like this is where I should be right now." a long pause before Snart spoke again, "We thought you were dead kid." his voice wavered just enough to make Barry turn back

Cold looked exhausted, as if he hadn't slept much the night before. He was looking at Barry as if the younger man might vanish instantly. One of his hands was half outstretched to touch Barry's shoulder but had paused in mid air when Barry turned. Barry reached up and took the suspended wrist, "I'm not." he pushed Snart's hand away, slowly. He didn't like people touching him at the moment. It made him twitchy and frustrated.

Snart gave a deep sigh, "I can see that." his eyes looked over every inch of Barry's prone form, "So the question is, why are you still in that bed?"

Barry froze for a split second before turning his head away again. The tears came faster now and he had to choke a sob off before it left his chest. He really didn't want to do this. Have a conversation with his sort of enemy about how helpless he was. How useless and naive. How Snart had always been right about him. His fists clenched at the bed sheets and he gave a slight full body vibration due to his suppressed emotions. Finally, with a shuddering inhale, Barry answered, "I can't feel my legs." he refused to hear how broken he sounded as he spoke while looking at the dark wall opposite his bed

Snart's small hiss of shock was the only thing that filled the silence that followed that statement. For several minutes Barry just continued to cry and look at everything but Snart. Eventually Barry jumped slightly when a hand landed firmly on his shoulder. Barry spun to face Snart, surprised to see the older man's face open. He looked like he was close to some sort of emotional break even as he gave a shaky smile, "But you'll get better right? I mean, can't have Central City without the Flash. Who am I supposed to fight then?"

"Caitlin says it might heal...or it might not." Barry's voice was cracking so bad now it was a wonder he was understandable, "I won't be able to save anyone anymore. I'm sorry Snart." Barry wasn't sure why he was apologizing

Apparently Snart wasn't either, "Don't know why you're sorry Barry. Things like this happen. Knowing you though, you'll shrug this off sooner or later." Snart sounded more confident then Barry felt about that. The grip on his shoulder tightened, "I'll just have to pick up the slack while you're laid up."

Barry didn't really know how to take that and asked, "What are you talking about?"

"There is a crazy blue speed monster running around my city Scarlet. Did you think I was just gonna let that pass? Not cool." Snart gave a smug smirk, but his eyes shown with a different sort of determination

Barry felt fear rise in his chest, almost making him want to be sick, "You can't go after him Snart."

Snart frowned, "Don't tell me what..."

"YOU CAN'T!" Barry screamed, causing Snart to let go and step back with shock. Barry took a deep breath and continued at a more reasonable volume, "You have no idea how strong he is. He beat me like I was nothing. I couldn't even last 5 minutes. The only reason I'm even alive is because Cisco managed to hit Zoom with a special Meta weapon. If he does to you what he did to me..." Barry gasped as the image that filled his mind. Leonard Snart, beaten and blood on the pavement. Lisa Snart, who would no doubt try to avenge her fallen brother, nothing but a red smear on a road. He shuddered, tears falling anew from his eyes, "I can't let that happen. I won't let anyone else die because of me."

Snart recovered from his shock quickly, frowning, "Barry..."

"No." Barry cut him off again, "It's over now. I'm out for the count. Zoom won't have any reason to come back here now that I'm gone."

"Do you really believe that Scarlet?"

Barry winced. He really didn't. Zoom wouldn't stop until Barry was dead. Now he was more then helpless against that inevitability. He refused to drag anyone down with him, even a criminal like Snart, "It's not your fight."

For a long time they just stared at each other. The dim emergency lights from the hallway continued to cast strange shadows over faces. Snart looked like he was thinking harder then he ever had in his life. Brows furrowed so deeply his eyebrows were touching. If the situation weren't so serious Barry might have found the expression amusing. As it was he just found it frustrating. Snart was putting his gathered data through his moral code, Barry was sure of it. And if Snart came to the wrong conclusion there would be nothing Barry could do to stop him from running off to die. Barry hated just how little there really was that he could to to prevent that.

Then Snart gave a single nod, "Fine."

Barry blinked in shock, "Fine?"

"Fine." Snart nodded again, "I'm going to let you handle this...for the moment." Snart reached over to where Barry's chart sat at the bottom of his bed. Using the pen attached to the clipboard the criminal wrote something on the paper. He put the clipboard into Barry's hands and said, making eye contact and holding it, "Call when you change your mind Scarlet." then he was gone into the shadows just as quickly as he had appeared

Barry looked down at the clipboard. There was a phone number scribbled across the bottom next to the initials CC. Tears began to fall for a whole other reason as Barry finally drifted off to sleep.


End file.
